Saturday, May 14, 2011

Journalist Murdered in Honduras; Take Action Today to Call for theSuspension of U.S. Military Aid (see below)

Our allies in the Cabañas, El Salvador are very concerned about a recentwave of death threats against members Radio Victoria, a community radiostation, which is an invaluable source of information to the ruralcommunities in Cabañas. Members of the collective have been outspokenagainst the fraud and corruption of local right-wing politicians, as wellas against Pacific Rim Mining's proposed gold mines.

In the past two weeks, Marixela Ramos and Pablo Ayala have receivedmultiple death threats against them and their family members by a groupidentifying itself as an "extermination group," telling them to leave theradio station immediately. The threats have been made primarily throughtext messages; written threats have also been slipped under the door ofthe radio station.Despite fact that there are roughly ten police officers assigned to dosecurity for community leaders in Cabañas, including some members of RadioVictoria, there is clearly a need for new forms of specialized policeprotection and for a thorough and immediate investigation into thesethreats and into the systematic campaign of intimidation against thesocial movement.

Background:

Death threats, kidnappings, robberies from 2009 and 2019, includingagainst members of Radio Victoria, ADES, ASIC, and the CAC – all activeorganizations in Cabañas’ mining resistance –were a prelude to the murdersof three activists, Marcelo Rivera, Ramiro Rivera and Dora Alicia SortoRecinos. Please read more in-depth reports here and here.

While material authors have been found guilty and sentenced in themurders, there have been no investigations of the intellectual authors ofthe murders or the relationship of the crimes to the victims’ politicalactivities. Therefore, our allies are extremely concerned that thison-going state of impunity could lead to more violence and murders in thenear future.

Please join us in taking action now to demand that the Attorney Generalproperly investigate these crimes and that the government providesufficient protection for community journalists and social movementleaders.TAKE ACTION TODAY!

1) Send an email to Salvadoran Attorney General Romeo Barahona todemand an immediate and exhaustive investigation into the death threats.

2) Send an email to David Morales, Director of Human Rights at theMinistry of Foreign Relations to demand that a new police unit be createdto accompany those being threatened.

If you speak Spanish, please also call Lic. Barahona to call for anexhastive investigation and Lic. Morales to call for adequate policeprotection today.

Call Script for Attorney General Barahona, Fiscal General de la Repúblicaat 011-503-2230-6350 (direct number of his assistant, Hector Burgos)

The people of Honduras urgently need your solidarity. Earlier this week,journalist Franciso Medina was killed by gunmen on motorcycle; he is theeleventh journalist to have been killed in Honduras in the past eighteenmonths. Members of the resistance movement, organized campesinos, LGBTactivists, and journalists continue to face violent state repression fortheir ongoing organizing against the illegitmate government of Pepe Loboand for a democratic re-founding of the Honduran state.

Representaties McGovern (D-MA), Shakowsky (D-IL) and Farr (D-CA) arecosponsoring a letter calling for the suspension of U.S. military aid toHonduras. Please take action today to ask your Representative to sign onto this letter to Secretary of State Hilary Clinton. The deadline for Repsto sign on is May 25th so please take action today. U.S. aid to thismurderous regime must end immediately!

Break the Chains.info

is a news and discussion forum for supporters of political prisoners, prisoners of war, politicized social prisoners, and victims of police and state intimidation.

This blog is organized and updated autonomously of the disbanded Break the Chains Prisoner Support Network formerly based in Eugene, Oregon. While this online project shares several of the same concerns as the old Break the Chains collective, no formal organization exists behind the current web presence.

"I will never surrender my pride and dignity nor allow the system to 'cut my tongue' and I will always, without fear, speak out against these war crimes and crimes against humanity, no matter if I spend the rest of my life in a prison cage, and draw my last breath of air laying down in this steel bed surrounded by razor-wire fences and cages, and its prison policies that are designed to destroy one's humanity…."